Blog

Is Your New Home At Risk Of Flooding?

By : acelegal, October 25, 2016

When you’re buying a new home, it is vital to ensure that you are not putting yourself at risk of flooding. It isn’t always obvious if a house is in a flood risk area, especially since many new housing estates have been built on flood plains, with new and untested flood defence measures built in.

Flooding can cause a great deal of damage to a property and its contents, and if your home floods, you may find that this makes it extremely difficult to get insurance in the future, or to sell your home when you need to. It’s important to make sure that you protect yourself by checking that your solicitor has made all the necessary checks to ensure your property is not at risk of flooding.

How To Check That A House Is Not At Risk Of Flooding

• Use National Flood Hazard Mapping. You can check whether a property you are interested in could be at risk of flooding online, by visiting the Irish National Flood Hazard Mapping Web Site, which allows you to search for flood information in different localities and access reports about floods that have happened previously. This can be a very useful initial check when you are considering buying a new home.

• Get a property report. Choose an engineer or architect to examine the property for you. If you are not satisfied with the level of detail you receive, be sure to raise questions about points raised in the report, and don’t take the risk if you are not sure about flooding. It may seem expensive to purchase a more thorough type of property report, but it will be far more expensive to replace belongings, fix property and pay much higher insurance premiums if your property floods.

• Talk to your solicitor. A house purchase is a complex but routine matter for an experienced property solicitor, and your solicitor should be happy to work with you to ensure all flood investigations are carried out for the property you are planning to buy. Here at Irwin, Kilcullen & Co Solicitors, we will ensure that any risk to the home you want to buy is investigated thoroughly, and we will report back to you with our findings to enable you to make an informed decision.

Find Property Solicitors in Cork

Buying a new home can be a stressful process, but an experienced conveyancing solicitor can help to keep it running smoothly. We specialize in all legal matters concerning property, and we will be happy to talk you through the process and ensure that you are well advised on all questions that arise.